TODAY is the first anniversary of the last Old Firm game.
To be absolutely clear on a couple of points, Celtic and Rangers dislike each other and most of their supporters stress that it should never, ever be said that they may need each other. Neither has either of them mourned the absence of their derby over the past 12 months. Nope, no way. In unrelated news, their under-17 teams play each other tonight and nearly 10,000 fans are expected to turn up. What popular youth teams they have.
The Glasgow Cup has not meant as much as it used to since the competition became an under-17s event but tonight's final, at Firhill, is unusually attractive. For one thing, the lines of demarcation between the full Rangers team and their under-17s are a little blurrier than they once were, which partly explains why Ally McCoist intends to be at Firhill. Definitely appearing will be Danny Stoney, a 16-year-old, still with braces on his teeth, who was a lively substitute against East Stirlingshire on Saturday.
Rangers' traipse around the Irn-Bru Third Division grounds is over. Their season finishes when the league trophy is presented to them after playing Berwick Rangers at Ibrox on Saturday.
The final away day had many of the distinguishing characteristics of their whole, daft season. There was behind-the-scenes upheaval before a ball was kicked with the news that commercial director Imran Ahmad had left the company, brought down by sensitive information being posted on a fans' website. Another day, another headline. They flirted with embarrassment on the pitch, being held at 2-2 by an East Stirlingshire team which played for a hour with 10 men after Kevin Turner's red card, before eventually easing away to victory. David Templeton scored twice and Robbie Crawford and Ian Black once.
It would be putting it mildly to say they were made welcome at Ochilview. The 'Shire players formed a guard of honour and Queen's We Are The Champions rang out on the public address system, as if someone had forgotten whose home game it was.
Yesterday, the plea by John Brown and others to "show us the deeds" was answered by finance director Brian Stockbridge, who did precisely that as he was pictured holding land certificates for Ibrox and Murray Park. He talked in calm, measured tones about the club's bank balance being healthy, its share-issue money resting reassuringly in the accounts, and its ownership of its physical assets being secure and not vulnerable to any potential legal claim by Craig Whyte.
Craig Mather, the new interim chief executive, had attempted to sound similarly soothing in another interview over the weekend.The club is trying to create an impression of order after chaos, although supporters are not of a mind to take the word of men they do not really know. It was telling that McCoist said he would withhold his endorsement for any season-ticket sales drive at the moment, just as he did this time last year. Suspicion and uncertainty continue at Ibrox. The story has a habit of shooting off in new, unfathomable directions but the club is also entering a phase in which its control and ownership may change hands over coming weeks and months.
The Deloitte probe into alleged business links between Whyte, Ahmad and former chief executive Charles Green is due to report to the club's board of directors later in the week, while McCoist and Mather are to meet tomorrow for discussions on the manager's budget for next season, which presumably will be spent in the Second Division.
"I'm not glad to see the back of these [Third Division] grounds," said McCoist, having smiled his way through pictures with umpteen children, 'Shire fans and local worthies. "The whole thing has been a massive rollercoaster journey. It's been a great experience. The away journeys have been fantastic. I'd imagine next year will in many ways be very similar."
The dramas have been draining for McCoist. "I'll be relieved when the season's over and we're already looking to next season."
The big-picture issues around Rangers are so grave and significant that they continue to obscure the little on-field indignities, such as the fact East Stirlingshire scored six times against them this season, including four from Paul Quinn alone. "Neil Alexander had a wee joke with me at the end," said Quinn. "He said I was becoming the bane of his life."
For many others around Ibrox, that remains Craig Whyte's role.
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